2016 marks 36 years on the land at Ata Rangi, our younger vines now aged from 5-20 years. In their youth, vines tend to be more fruit expressive, gaining more complexity with time. The 2016 very much shows a turning point from vibrant youth to tension and complexity that more mature vines bring.
Aromatically this wine offers layers of flavours: violets, dark cherry and plum, notes of bitter chocolate and tobacco with a faint whiff of rabbit guts. There is a fresh vibrancy on the palate of acid and smooth tannins pulling the wine through to a long, salivating finish.
2016 started well with a gentle spring that encouraged even flowering and fruit set across the vineyards. Early summer was calm, without the winds that plagued 2015 and the vines were in great shape to deal with a hotter than average February. March saw a return to cooler conditions, a perfect finish to the season. The winemaking philosophy is the same as for our signature Pinot Noir; no enzymes or yeasts are added, providing a hands-off, traditional approach which
we feel more truly expresses the site.

Customer Reviews

A very handy edition of Crimson pinot noir in 2016, this has a suave and grown-up feel to it. Innately complex and layered aromas, flavors and textures. This wine is packed with ripe red cherry and poached red plum fruits as well as inherently spicy, perfumed and earthy attributes. The way in which it rolls out on the palate is just superb; a silky, succulent and seductive red. Drink now. November 2017. (Posted on 23/11/2017)

Martinborough pinot noir at the hand of one of the masters. “The name Crimson is inspired by a love of rata and pohutakawa, New Zealand’s stunning red-flowering native trees. Sales of this wine support the Project Crimson charitable conservation trust”.
It isn’t the flagship pinot from Ata Rangi but boy is this a powerful wine. Impressive to say the least. This is muscular and dense, in a varietal context, with satsuma plum, steel, black cherry and campfire notes bleeding gradually into sweet spice and stem. It’s as intricate as it is integrated. It’s primed with tannin, all spicy and ripe, and it still manages to fan ample flavour out through the finish. It’s all quite remarkable, really.(Posted on 5/10/2017)

Richly scented pinot noir with plum, cherry and mineral flavours, together with a seasoning of spice and subtle herbal characters. A bright, high energy wine that's a pleasure to drink now but has the potential to develop well.(Posted on 5/10/2017)

Youthful, yet impressively harmonious and complex, the wine offers lifted aromas of dark cherry, raspberry, game and clove with hints of thyme and floral notes. The palate delivers lovely weight and roundness, beautifully complemented by silky texture and pristine fruit flavours as well as subtle savoury complexity, finishing long and satisfying. A delectable offering showing charm and delight. At its best: now to 2021. (Posted on 5/10/2017)

Full, deep, dark ruby-red colour with youthful purple hues, a little lighter on the edge. The nose is full and up-front with voluminous aromas of dark raspberries with notes of blackberries, lifted whole berry fermentation plum jam notes, unfolding liquorice and raspberry liqueur elements. This is very primary in expression and very accessible on nose. Medium-full bodied, the palate is rich and plush with succulently sweet and luscious flavours of ripe dark raspberries, blackberries and plums, unfolding red liquorice and raspberry liqueur layers. The fruit is supported by fine-grained, supple tannins and enlivened by fresh background acidity. The mouthfeel is rounded and approachable, the richness carrying the wine to a soft, fruit-laden finish. This is a rich and succulent, primary-fruited Pinot Noir with fine, supple tannins, a rounded mouthfeel and plenty of vibrant, primary energy and freshness. It needs a few months to harmonise, but is already delicious. Serve with Asian and Middle Eastern fare over the next 4-5 years. Hand-picked fruit, clones 5, 10/5, Abel and Dijon clones, vines 5-20 y.o., destemmed and indigenous yeast fermented with a high proportion of whole berries to 13.5% alc., the wine aged 10 months in 20% new French oak. Proceeds of sales of this wine go towards ‘Project Crimson’ for the conservation of the native Rata and Pohutakawa. (Posted on 11/04/2017)